SZ

Chapter 12: European Society in the Renaissance

Approximate Time Period: 1350-1550

Skill: Contextualization

  • Renaissance in Context

    • Rebirth of ancient Greco-Rowan (“classical”) works

      • Saved by Arabs, weren’t as offended as Christians about Pagan works

      • 1450; Constantinople taken over by Turks, people flee, bringing Greco-Roman ideas to west

      • Italian city states were more open to this

    • Columbus brings observations that don’t make sense (natural world observations)

      • Discovery of a new “planet”

      • Doesn’t make sense → skepticism

  • Classical works → new scholarship methods

    • Greco-Roman rebirth; translating old works

  • Emergence of new values in society, religion, and politics

    • Revolts against Kings

    • Secularism and centralization in government

    • New values infiltrate P.E.R.S.I.A. acronym

    • People questioning the system of centralization

    • Literacy improved for some, “knowledge is power”

  • Art depicts personal, political, and religious issues

  • Exploration in the Americas - interacting with indigenous populations

  • Commercial and Agricultural capitalism → economic changes

  • Social changes (hierarchy and status challenged)

    • Non-noblemen (e.g. Columbus) making more than some noblemen

    • “New wealth”

    • Upends political and hierarchical systems

  • Continuity: Agriculture, village life, rural etc. was still daily life for most people

Oh, the Humanity!

  • Celebrates humanity

    • Belief that we can become great

    • Realism

  • Humanists = revivalists in classical Greco-Roman texts/literature

    • Petrarch, Valla, Ficino, Mirandola

  • Secularism and individualism are furthered in values

    • Machiavelli, Castiglione, Guicciardini

    • Political science, sociology

  • Use of Greco-Roman literature to talk about morality and character

    • Bruni, Alberti, Machiavelli

  • Book of the Courtier (social) and The Prince (political) are both humanism

  • Printing press changes the game

    • Becomes cheaper and more accessible

    • Increases literacy rates

    • Challenged Catholic church authority

  • From theological to scientific inquiry

Italian City-States Facilitate

  • City-state structure is a major reason Renaissance starts in Italy

  • Greco-Roman political institutions => civic humanism in Italian city-states

    • “Anna-polis” (city-state; America symbolizes the idea of city states)

    • Italy was fractured into small city-states; facilitated Greco-Roman ideas: innovation, skepticism, secularism

    • But also left Italy vulnerable

  • Secular models for individual/political behavior (Machiavelli/Castiglione)

  • Rulers/popes commissioned paintings/architectural works

    • Paid for paintings to show power, get name out

    • Artists were popularized

    • Pope patronized art

  • No one questioned the existence of God, they were trying to prove God exists

  • Naturalism developed using geometric perspectives

    • Landscapes, humanism

    • “How can there be perfection?”

    • They try to prove it through math

    • PROOFS - geometry

  • Medicis dominated Florence (60000)

    • Popes, queens, rulers, etc.

    • Family (?) with hella power

    • Some (Machiavelli) tried to write works to convince the Medicis to unify Italy

Art

  • Gothic architechture

    • Religious, tall buildings

    • Pointing to sky (heaven)

    • Giant arches

    • Small details; depictions carved in

  • Michelangelo

    • Use of geometry (triangles)

    • David

    • Death of a child (mournful regardless of religion)

  • Raphael

    • More geometry (“proofs”)

    • Depth

  • Andrea Palladio

    • Neoclassical architecture

    • Reminiscent of White House, Rome

  • Flilppo Brunelleschi

    • Domes, symbolize power and achievement

The Prince

  • Machiavelli: first political scientist

  • “The Ends Justify the Means?” (XVIII) pg 75

    • Ultimate goal >> negative process?

      • Need for the A → GPT

      • Want Italy to unite → lie to the French

    • Individualism

  • “Separated powerful rulers from praiseworthy (Agathocles in VIII) pg 37

    • Cruel to be cruel ❌

    • Cruel for good reason ✅

  • Violence

    • Violent in interest of personal ❌

    • Violent in interest of public ✅

    • “A social upheaval once in a while is good”

      • A good forest fire; a refresh

  • Dumb to align with a more powerful ruler

  • Medici will free Italians → individualism

    • Writing to the Medicis directly

    • He fell out of favor of ruling group, placed under house arrest

  • Selfish & materialistic (WVII); does not change (static) pg 72

    • Human nature is static, so it can be manipulated

    • Start to make plans → stay a step ahead → others a step behind

  • Social conflict can be politically positive

    • Someone will always be angry

  • Conspiracies, war, invasions are normal

    • Best government wins!

Northern Renaissance

  • Refers to Renaissance north of Italy (France, Germans, etc.)

  • Religiously centered

    • Christian humanists wrote for religious reforms

    • Writing to religious figures to make it better

      • Erasmus of Rotterdam (Netherlands)

    • Praise of Folly: satirized clergy pretensions/ambitions to not get caught

    • Attacked church abuses, ignorance of clergy, corruption (no principles)

      • Just mess with obvious annoyances/offenses, not questioning Catholic principles.

      • Calling for reforms, doesn’t want to upend Catholic church

      • Doctrine and dogma are not attacked

  • Human centered naturalism (everyday life)

    • Italy: more intent in paintings (portraits since they were commissioned)

    • North -> more natural, everyday life.

    • Natural and realistic, no supernatural stuff

    • Examples: Pieter Bruegel the Elder, Rembrandt

  • Gutenberg’s printing press disseminated ideas beyond Italy

    • Copying machine of his day

    • Cost to have copies of works goes WAY down

    • People had access to new philosophy ideas

    • Encouraged vernacular literature: development of national cultures

      • Distributing works in regional languages

      • Unifying people around their language

      • Before, everyone had to look at Latin

Centralized Monarchs

  • Established monopolies on tax collection and building an army (Louis XI of France)

    • The old pyramid was falling, too dependent on every tier

    • People loyal to king directly collected taxes

    • Used to build an army

  • Concordat (declaration/doctrine) of Bologna: Appointment power of bishops (Francis I of France)

  • Dispensing justice via Star Chamber (Henry VII of England)

    • Henry meets in the Star Chamber, doesn’t invite nobles

    • Circumvents the nobles in dispensing of justice

    • Invites non-nobles instead of nobles, making them loyal to the king

    • Diminishes the power/importance of nobles

    • New wealth and importances emerge

    • Dispensing justice = making laws and court without the nobles

  • Aragon/Castile’s reconquista unified Spain (Ferdinand and Isabella)

    • Ottoman Empire attempts to conquer Spain and make it Islamic

      • Invades from North Africa

    • Reconquista: throw out the Islamic Turks through violence; doubles down on Catholicism

  • Spanish “Inquisition” Fused Nationalism and Catholicism

    • “Spain for Spanish Catholics only, everyone else out”

    • Tortured/killed/expelled non-Spanish

  • Henry VIII and Elizabeth I top down control of religion

Holy Roman Empire (German States)

  • “Neither Holy, Roman, or an empire, yet it was called, the “Holy Roman Empire”

  • 446 states in the HRE

    • Decentralized

  • 1356: 7 Great Electors “elect” the Holy Roman Emperor

    • 7 states (principalities) “vote” (only leader votes) have voting status

  • Austrian Habsburgs held position from 1452-1806, attempted centralization

  • Maximilian I: used royal marriage to create a vast empire

  • Charles (Grandson of Maximillian I) inherited Austria, Netherlands, Burgundy, Spain, Spanish America, etc.

    • Empire was too big to unify

  • Ottoman Empire is KILLING IT -- central Europe looking to Habsburgs for protection

    • 1526 Turks defeated Hungarians at Mohacs; terrifies central and western Europe

  • Habsburgs controlled a bunch of territory, scares France

  • Strongest royal house since Charlemagne; Europe feared a “universal monarchy”

  • Europe becomes obsessed with the BALANCE OF POWER

    • Countries start aligning with each other

    • Strange alliances but are created to have a balance of power